Namestnikov scores in 3rd as Rangers beat Hurricanes

The Rangers' Vladislav Namestnikov, far right, shoots the puck past Hurricanes goalie Curtis McElhinney for what proved to be the winning goal in the third period Tuesday in Raleigh, N.C. (Chris Seward / AP) (Chris Seward/AP)

RALEIGH, N.C. — Vladislav Namestnikov scored the tiebreaking goal early in the third period, giving the New York Rangers a 2-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday night.

Connor Brickley also scored for the Rangers, who earned a split of a four-game road trip and handed the Hurricanes just their third loss this month. Henrik Lundqvist stopped 43 shots to get his 17th win of the season.

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Jordan Martinook scored and Curtis McElhinney finished with 24 saves for Carolina, which had won six of its previous seven games — including its first road win over the Rangers since Oct. 2010. The victory on Feb. 8 ended a 16-game losing streak at New York, but the Rangers were able to return the favor on the Hurricanes' home ice.

Namestnikov scored on a rebound at 6:10 of the third. McElhinney stopped the first shot by defenseman Tony DeAngelo and the rebound effort by Pavel Buchnevich, but couldn’t deny Namestnikov.

Lundqvist denied Carolina captain Justin Williams from point-blank range with 1:37 left in the game to preserve the road win for the Rangers.

After a scoreless first period, Martinook gave Carolina a 1-0 lead at 9:53 of the second as he gathered a rebound of Dougie Hamilton’s shot and beat Lundqvist.

Just 47 seconds later, the Rangers tied it on Brickley’s first of the season. Filip Chytil flipped a backhand shot at McElhinney, and the puck bounced off McElhinney’s right shoulder. Brickley was charging the net, and it caromed off of his upper body and past the goalie. The goal was originally ruled no good on the ice but the ruling was overturned on video replay.

The Hurricanes were looking good when they were able to kill off a two-man advantage by the Rangers for 43 seconds early in the third period. A tripping penalty on winger Brock McGinn overlapped with a holding penalty on center Lucas Wallmark, but the Hurricanes were able to avoid giving up a power-play goal.

Namestnikov got the winner just 2 seconds after the second penalty expired.

Notes: Carolina C Jordan Staal returned to practice this week but sat out his 26th straight game with a concussion. Staal, who has 11 points in 29 games, hasn’t played since Dec. 22. ... New York D Brady Skjel returned to the lineup after missing one game with a lower-body injury.